Royal wedding: Not clear who will walk Meghan down the aisle

In this Monday, April 23, 2018 file photo, Britain's Prince William arrives with Prince George and Princess Charlotte at the Lindo wing at St Mary's Hospital in London. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)

LONDON (AP) — The question of whether Meghan Markle’s father will walk his daughter down the aisle to marry Britain’s Prince Harry or attend the wedding persisted Wednesday as royal representatives remained tight-lipped on possible changes to the program.

Harry’s press office declined to comment on a celebrity news website’s report that Thomas Markle, 73, needed a heart procedure and would not be well enough to fly to England.

The uncertainty over his health and attendance at Saturday’s wedding came from comments TMZ said the father made exclusively to the site. His condition has not been independently confirmed.

Thomas Markle, a retired Hollywood cinematographer who lives in Mexico, told TMZ he would receive a stent and other treatment for blocked coronary arteries on Wednesday morning.

Stent procedures done on a non-emergency basis typically do not require long hospital stays, but the recovery guidance likely would rule out a lengthy plane trip to England right after surgery.

The bride’s parents divorced when she was a child. Her mother, Doria Ragland, is traveling from Los Angeles to England for the wedding and is scheduled to ride with her daughter to St. George’s Chapel on the grounds of Windsor Castle before the ceremony.

Ragland is also scheduled to visit with Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, Prince William and his wife, Kate, and other senior royals this week. Thomas Markle also had been expected to spend the days before the wedding meeting the queen and other members of his daughter’s future family.

The palace has not announced any alternative plans for Thomas Markle’s role of accompanying his daughter through the chapel to meet the groom. An official announcement is expected if it’s confirmed that he will not be making it to the wedding.

Some estranged members of Meghan Markle’s extended family have arrived in Britain, but did not receive invitations to the wedding.

Concerns about Thomas Markle’s health overshadowed Wednesday’s announcements of the bridesmaids and page boys who will take part in the ceremony.

The list include William and Kate’s two older children: Prince George, 4, and Princess Charlotte, 3.

It is a repeat performance for the two, who were a page boy and bridesmaid when Kate’s sister, Pippa Middleton, married last year.

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